Disclaimer: Demon Slayer is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
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Drip, drip, drip.
The cloudy sky began to drop raindrops in a drizzle, and the smell of damp air spread.
"Rain?" Gyutaro released his grip on his sister's mouth as he curiously touched the wetness on his face with his fingers.
His eyes glance at the sky. His eyebrows furrowed as his face scrunched up.
Such annoying weather.
He recalled some bad memories in his past life as a human.
Such thought incited anger within him as he lifted Daki behind him and let him sit on his shoulder. "Sit tight."
"Hm? Daki, who had been crying inconsolably, looked full of confidence upon hearing her brother. She smiled as she spoke with more fervor.
Having her older brother by her side, Daki's boldness has increased a hundredfold. She's about to launch a full-scale attack!
"Alright, Nii-chan!" Daki curled her lips as her sash lifted behind her. Its sharp edges shine menacingly at the three people in front of it. "Let's tear those guys who bullied me into pieces!"
Two beings who are one.
When Gyutaro awakens, Daki's strength also increases.
But...
Gyutaro just looks at his sister with a puzzled expression.
He tightened his grip on his menacing, flesh scythe in his hands and kept his gaze fixed on Tanjuro. He subtly turned his body to minimize the target on his torso.
The demons and the slayers stand off as if waiting for a signal.
But the demons broke the rule as Gyutaro put enormous power through his legs as he turned around and ran in the opposite direction.
The sudden movement almost jolted Daki from her perch on her brother's shoulder.
In an instant, Gyutaro put a considerable distance from the battlefield as the rain continued to drizzle down on this fateful night.
"We're not going to attack." His voice was deep and contemplative as he thought about the consequences of his action. "We need to run."
Gyutaro weighs the outcome of two choices in front of him.
They ran away—Muzan-sama will be displeased and punish them harshly.
But they have a sliver of a chance to live.
Stay and fight?
His pupils shifted, and a new yellow eye opened on his back, keeping an eye on Tanjuro, who has a slight raising of his eyebrow at seeing them running away.
—They will definitely die!
An incredibly dangerous aura is emanating from this guy!
The other two aren't much of a threat. That guy with the white hair, who is quite handsome, is an eyesore, certainly.
Although "Do unto others before they do unto you" is his creed of survival.
Running away, right now, is undoubtedly the smartest choice.
"Eh—!"
"Why do we have to run away?"
Daki was puzzled by her brother's decision as she blinked her eyes.
She leaned down to bring her face closer to Gyutaro. "Can't we win? Two demons, ranked third, can't defeat those three humans?!"
"Is that for real?!" She asked incredulously and in disbelief.
Gyutaro remained silent. His eyes fixed ahead as his legs kept sprinting swiftly. He wants to quickly put distance between himself and the Yoshiwara district.
As for whether he could escape successfully, there was never a doubt in his mind.
With his speed, he was among the fastest in all of the Upper Moon.
Even before his promotion.
The thoughts of failing to escape never take root in his mind.
Swish!
Gyutaro felt a gust of wind from his side.
He instinctively glanced at what it was, and immediately his eyes widened.
Seeing the situation that was happening before him, he couldn't help but question reality.
"How is that possible!?"
Gyutaro shouted in shock as his eyes reflected the steaming figure of Tanjuro, who was running alongside him with his Nichirin blade up.
In one step, Tanjuro's form had already appeared beside the two demons, matching their pace.
On the dim rooftops, only shadows remain to the naked eye.
White steam continuously seeped from the corner of Tanjuro's mouth.
The surging resurrection power within his body surged; ever since he had absorbed the energy from two Upper Moons in one go, the accumulated power has been overflowing the container and transformed into a true foundation for his body.
The paper dolls he collected are more numerous than ever before.
Tanjuro had never fought such an advantageous battle before.
Behind them, Tengen was running with all his might with a frown on his face. Even though he was the fastest Hashira, he could barely keep up with the two figures ahead of him.
Gyutaro adjusted quickly and gritted his shark-like teeth in frustration.
Hiss—!
Before he could think of a countermeasure.
A wave of scorching heat generation was felt from the side of his face.
)—Sun Breathing Fourth Form!—(
)—Shakkotsu En'yō!—(
(tr. Burning Bones, Summer Sun)
Tanjuro dragged Kusabimaru from behind him as sun flames entwined the blade. With a swift turn of his waist, he closed the distance between Gyutaro and him in an instant!
His pitch-black sword swung in a spiraling motion. The blood jutsu extended the blade range to an unprecedented proportion.
Gyutaro stared at the blade that was getting closer to his neck, his pupils contracting as he raised his weapon.
He was confident his scythe could block the attack.
However!
The blade suddenly changes its trajectory from his neck to the real target.
Snick!
"Eh?"
The blade cut cleanly and decisively, slicing through Daki's neck as her head soared high from her body, again.
Daki had never expected the attack, as her face showed her stunned expression.
Everything happened too quickly; Daki couldn't react at all!
"What?!" Gyutaro looked up in surprise, staring at his headless sister on his shoulder.
'Was the target my sister from the beginning?'
Tanjuro stopped in his tracks as his gaze fixed on Daki's head.
He jumped up and kicked the way toward Tengen's direction.
"AHG!" Daki let out a painful wail as her head spins in midair and bounces on the rooftop.
"Take her!" Tanjuro shouted toward Tengen. "Bring her head away from here! The farther, the better!"
"Don't let the head and the body come back together!"
Hearing the man's supposed plan, Gyutaro stopped his run. "...You... what are you talking about...!?"
He locked his gaze at Tanjuro, then his eyes followed his sister's head.
For a moment, he was flustered about what to do between Tanjuro and Daki.
Tanjuro did not look back.
Since Kusabimaru isn't a nichirin blade, Daki's beheading didn't immediately turn her to ash.
The Sun Breathing Sixth Form, Hirin Kagerō (tr. Solar Heat Haze), can cause burns similar to those from a nichirin blade.
With the quick strike, Daki probably won't be able to understand that her head wasn't cut off by a nichirin blade.
And handing over Daki to Tengen is the best way to disorient Gyutaro, who was extremely protective of his sister.
As for why he didn't use the Sixth Form.
Tanjuro raised his head and glanced at the rumbling sky.
He took out two paper dolls from his pocket.
The wrinkled paper figure struggled before clinging to his sword.
The other doll... he attached it to the black feather that popped out from his ninja arm sleeve when Tanjuro flicked his wrist.
Crack.
Lightning rolled across the dark mass that churned slowly against each other.
He is still not proficient in the technique 'Lightning of Tomoe' and needs some time to prepare it. He can't do it like Genichiro, who burns his arm to charcoal to master it.
During that time, he couldn't afford for Gyutaro to escape, as that would be problematic.
...
"Gah!" Daki's head spewed out blood from her mouth as she crashed heavily into Tengen's arms. Her expression was dazed as she blinked her eyes.
"...decapitated again?" She murmured confusedly with a hint of mist rising in her eyes. "Do you like my head that much?"
Tengen held Daki's head by her hair as he stopped his run. He looked at the two fighters with a serious expression.
"Hey! Let go of me!" Daki finally came to her senses. Tears were flowing down her eyes as she shouted angrily at Tengen.
The Sound Hashira ignored her, recalling everything Tanjuro had done and said. His gaze fixed on the blood-wrapped Kusabimaru.
All of his life.
Ninja...
...are a killing machine that has been trained brutally since birth.
Ninjutsu, in reality, is the utilization of your surrounding environment.
Water Escape is the rigorous training to develop the ability to hold one's breath underwater for a long period of time.
Earth Release is to raise as much sand dust as possible to obscure the enemies' vision to assassinate them or escape.
The use of tools, resistance to toxins... and so on are all trained ninja techniques.
His tiny smoke bombs that can explode and harm demons, in a sense, belong to the category of ninjutsu.
Since acquiring Transparent World, he can discern when people are lying to him or not. Tanjuro, his fellow ninja, has never lied when he said all those words.
Tengen couldn't help the surge of doubt in his heart.
'This flashy technique...'
'Is it really ninjutsu?'
He raised an eyebrow at the blood jutsu Kusabimaru.
All of this just formed a question in his heart.
'What exactly is the Ashina-ryu?'
He shoved his curiosity to the back of his mind as he turned around and did as Tanjuro asked.
Before he could travel long, he caught a glimpse of the flickering golden lightning in the sky from the corner of his eyes.
Rumble! Crack!
The lightning struck down where Tanjuro is located.
Tengen snapped his head back as he stopped to look at Tanjuro's direction; anxiousness filled his being.
...
Tanjuro gripped his sword tightly as he blocked Gyutaro's running route.
"Bastard!" Gyutaro gritted his teeth and muttered angrily. His gaze fixated on his sister's severed head. "Let go of my sister!"
He took off running again, trying to bypass Tanjuro and charge directly at Tengen.
Tanjuro suddenly looked up to the sky.
"Here it comes." He muttered to himself.
"???"
Seeing Tanjuro's stance, Gyutaro couldn't help but hesitate for a moment.
He also looked up at the sky.
Crack!
Dazzling golden lightning filled his vision as they struck down toward his location.
"What sorcery is this?!" Gyutaro shouted in surprise, but the sound of thunder drowned out his ears, and he couldn't even hear his own words.
His pupils contracted to a point as they trembled seeing Tanjuro's menacing figure.
Then, he saw Tanjuro flick his left hand.
)—Kirigarasu!—(
(tr. Mist Raven)
Swish!
A pitch-black aura enveloped the feather, and Tanjuro quickly transformed into an intangible mist as he was swept up and soaring the sky in an instant.
Gyutaro hung his mouth open as he couldn't make sense of the mystical techniques coming from the human in front of him.
'IS THIS GUY REALLY A DEMON SLAYER?!'
In his memory, there has never been a human like this!
As if his reality wasn't broken enough, he witnessed a scene that would stick in his mind for eternity.
Crackle!
Tanjuro reappeared from the intangible mist and collided with the descending lightning in midair. Kusabimaru was enveloped and transformed into a golden, elongated plasma spear.
This is the true Lightning Summoning, not just Lightning Redirection or Reversal.
Gyutaro couldn't take his eyes away from the spectacle. He felt his whole body tingling from the sense of danger.
He wanted to move his feet but found himself stuck in place. He gritted his teeth and swung his sickle with all of his strength.
Slash!
After cutting off his feet, he quickly turned around and tried to escape. He has to retrieve his sister's head at the very least!
Unfortunately, he was one step too slow.
Crackle! Boom!
The golden thunder spear streaked through the air and punched through the fleeing figure of Gyutaro.
"AAAA—!!" He screamed out in pain as he was electrocuted by thousands of volts from nature's anger.
His whole body trembled yet stood in place. Golden electricity dancing across his body.
...
Daki's head keeps struggling. Her eyes showed fury as she shouted her displeasure.
"That guy is definitely a demon!" Her white hair tried to attack Tengen, but it was easily blocked by Giyu.
"Are you blind? The real demon is right across from us!" Daki was exasperated.
Tengen stood still. He couldn't believe what he had just seen.
It was only after Giyu put his hand on his shoulder that Tengen snapped out of it.
His doubts were no longer limited to ninjutsu.
'Is he... really a ninja?'
...
Thump.
Tanjuro landed in a crouch to absorb the impact of his fall. Kusabimaru in his hand was smoking and glowing red from the lightning strike.
Seeing Gyutaro paralyzed, Tanjuro didn't waste any time.
He stepped forward and swung his blade toward the demon's neck.
Sha—!
The crimson blade cuts through the falling raindrops, instantly evaporating the liquid into a wisp of mist.
"Damn it..." Gyutaro stared intently at the blade approaching his neck. His adrenaline kicked into high gear, and time seemed to slow down.
Just as the red-hot sword was about to touch his neck.
"ONII-CHAAN!!"
His sister's distant scream, yet at the same time seemingly very close, echoed in his ears.
His gaze turned to look in the distance.
It was Daki's head, crying and shouting at the top of her lungs.
'No...'
Gyutaro's eyes trembled.
'NO!'
His heart felt like it was being squeezed like a lemon.
He blinked...
...and found himself in a vast expanse of white void.
His body could move without him meaning to. He was stunned as he looked at his dirty hands in confusion.
"Onii-chan?"
The sound of a little girl came from behind him.
Gyutaro paused and hesitantly turned around.
The vast white world suddenly extended with color from where the voice sounded.
As if the world were turning back to normal.
They were behind the buildings of the worst slums of the Yoshiwara district in the Edo period hundreds of years ago.
With her snow-white hair draped over her shoulders, the girl looked as beautiful as a summer snow fairy. She stands there with an attitude and hands on her hips.
A pair of azure eyes looked at her brother in confusion.
"Are you listening?"
Gyutaro lowered his head and locked eyes with the girl.
'This... my sister... Daki—No.'
He rubbed his dirty face. The sickles in his hand turned into ordinary sickles with wooden handles.
'My real younger sister.'
'Ume.'